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Alex Machin

Alex, a junior vehicle technician, loves classic cars – his particular favourite is the Datsun 240z – and his career goal is to one day restore these types of cars for a living. In the meantime, he’s hoping to start his career as a vehicle technician with a local mechanic having completed his Certificate in Light Vehicle Maintenance, which he did after finishing his Level 2 Diploma in Engineering. 

Alex, who went to Torpoint Community College, said: “I had two great years at City College – it was such good fun and I learnt a lot. The lecturers on the vehicle maintenance course are such a good laugh, but they also work hard to get you the grade you want. They make the sessions fun and engaging, and that makes you want to learn more.

“They would always try and make the learning as practical as possible by using loads of resources, giving us all a chance to see and feel whatever it was we were learning about. They also did a great job of encouraging us to stretch our learning. Our extended learning challenge – converting a Vauxhall Corsa into a track car – was a highlight of the course for me.”

Alex, who said he has made many great friends at the College, also said he appreciated how the staff treat you like adults and give you the right level of independence when it came to college work. He said: “They would do what they could to help you if you were finding something tough, but they wanted us to be treated like adults: it was up to us to get our work done, but we felt respected by them so we all wanted to get our work done to the best of our abilities.”

Alex, who is completing a probation with Efford Service Station, believes if auto engineering is your area of interest, then City College is the place to go. “You get the right mix of independence and support from the staff, and you will meet some great, like-minded people. If you are suited to practical learning and you prefer to be given the chance to work through things for yourself after being shown the basics, then the style of teaching at the College will suit you well.”